SeanR

Read a few pages on this and know folk do it in various ways, the point of this ? is to find out whether or not folk think it is actually worth it and will look good. My car goes in next week to have stone chips repaired anyways, so the guy will have the paint. My car is dark grey. Never been a big fan of chrome on the front of a car so maybe an opportunity, im not saying i cant live with it im just thinking maybe. Any thoughts.

Thank you, seen there is quite a lot of Toyota red coolant for sale on Ebay. Coincidently, took a look under the bonnet earlier and one of the belt pulley wheels caught my eye. 2 of the bolts that hold it on look a lot newer than the other bolts, in fact look pretty recent. This is the pulley in front of the water pump, so maybe it has already been changed. I cant see any other reason why someone would have removed a pulley wheel

Looked at quite a few online and was surprised at some of the prices No haggling either on price, dealers just tell you cars are hard to get a hold of these days. Would usually look for a private sale bargain, but none within a reasonable distance, as always. Good luck with your purchase!

If your selling a car to buy your new one make sure you check out the prices on autotrader etc. I had an 07 fiesta, thought it would be worth £900 Being lazy, was happy with the price Autotrader said it was worth when you type in the year/ mileage = £1500 Sold it for £1350 and the guy that showed up was a dealer ? Did some searching online and similar cars going for £2500. My point being, would have knocked an whole lot more of the price f the new car. Ps, ive just bought an IS250, engine and gearbox (main concern) as reliable as you can get. Look online at more modern equivalent BMW and Merc, full of issues out of warranty and not a smart buy. I saw 2011 is250 going for £10500 at a Lexus garage with 60k miles, someones buying them! My budget was £7500, look for good history and be careful around some dealers. Had a few bull----s that lied about history and MOT history. Infact MOT history online is of great help.

Just thought i would add this to this particular thread as its the most recent thread i can find on this particular issue. I put the question to a guy i know over in Japan, this is what he was told by a firm that puts race cars together and apparently they know their stuff. Just an opinion and not meant to influence anyone, i see there are different views on this particular topic. Anyways, heres the reply. would shy away from changing the auto transmission fluid, unless there is an obvious problem. He says that just changing it can invite unwanted unknowns. Better safe than sorry

Just been watching a video on youtube about changing the water pump, something i would have a go at rather than pay someone big bucks to do. Even just looking at the pump, all these plastic covers in the way, where they really necessary

Thank you!

Thank you At the risk of not wanting to start another thread and bore you guys to death, just one last quick question. Ive read the water pumps can start to fail at 70k, just wondering what the chances are of mine having been replaced already at 86k Got the Lexus history but no receipts for this, any way to find out ?

I guess the price is fair if he does change the filter etc. A vid of one of those machines on youtube. Watched 3 or 4 vids online and only one did the filter, the rest just dropped the fluid and topped up. They did mention you had to do this 3 or 4 times to make it worth while. One guy kept going on about fluid level and an overfill bolt that you had to take out. I was just wondering why they didnt just measure what came out and put the same back in..(but what do i know) Rear diff looked pretty straight forward.

I see, a lot more to it Leigh not to far away, whats the name of the place that does it there? Cheers

Looks great!

With the price of fuel, i look at this way Spent a lot less buying an older car, so that helps iron out concerns about fuel

Thanks for the heads up on exhausts, Linas, not too sure what way i will go about it, but definitely need to do some reading up. Vladimir, i find Fords of that era are also very reliable cars if looked after. I dont have a garage as moved away from where i used to live. Was hoping find a Lexus independent but they seem rare, that Toyotech looks interesting. Out of curiosity, what mileage should i consider an auto gearbox oil change? , mines done 85k now. Il be honest, i dont like the sound of £500!, the £140 from Lexus sounds more tempting.

Ps, was kind of concerned it may guzzle petrol, but dont seem too bad, compared to some ive owned over the years. Thanks all! Sean

Hello, thanks for the replies. Linas, i didnt know that about stainless steel, something im going to have to take a closer look at when the time comes for a change. Seen a firm on Ebay that is in Leeds, they say they can make them as loud or quiet as you want. Vladimir, i will try and keep this short and not too boring, the reason i went for an IS250. Back when i was a youngster i was always in to Japanese performance cars, the usual Supra, Skyline, 300zx and so on. Owned a few then bought a Lexus GS300, liked that so much that a few years later i bought another, an older GS300 sport. Great cars, all the time i owned Japanese cars, especially Lexus, i never had one issue!. Then one day i buys a 2007 Mercedes CLS and worst buy ever, pre-mature worn sprocket due to manufacturing error and 3k to fix!. Mercedes talked to me like 60,000 miles was a lot for a car and i should expect such issues, really annoyed me. I watch a guy on youtube called Scotty Kilmer, he has it right about Mercs and BMW, maybe you have seen him. Anyways, was looking at BMW 520d and got sick of reading problems about timing chains. I spoke to an independent BMW mechanic and he said most chains start making noises around 80k. Mercedes E class 2l diesel the same. After going around in circles for a few months reading about issues with German cars, started to look at Lexus again. Didnt want to buy a German car out of warranty or pay for an extra long warranty, they are just not reliable enough. I live the other side of Manchester to Longsight, the guy who is doing the work does a good job, but thanks for the heads up. The car came from a dealer with 3 months warranty, it has a full Lexus history, one stamp for every year since. Ive read about the brakes, going to try and find a vid or some info and do them twice a year, cheers. John, thanks for the heads up about the tints. I suppose this guy sums up why i chose a Lexus, sounds like Shaggy off Scooby Doo but i like his vids

Hello all, Bought a 2010 IS250 recently and must say so far very impressed, drives like a new car. Surprising firm suspension, but that just might be me as been driving a 2007 fiesta with squidgy suspension for the previous few years. Full service history and no apparent faults so far. One thing i noticed though, some stone chips on the back driver side wheel arch starting to show rust. Hate this, so booked it in with body repairs to sort it before it gets worse! Apart from that, body work and underneath is fine, might wax oil it in the summer. Exhaust seems ok, expect the rear will go first so already been looking for stainless steel alternatives, not daft sounding ones though. Might get the rear windows tinted a bit darker, il see. Good to drive a decent motor again Anyways, a few bad pics. Cheers, Sean

Nice motors!, always look good in black Dont see that many around either, good to be different.

Thank you! Appreciate the tips, will get some of that grease ordered. Cheers Sean

Thank you, will post a pic of the car when i receive it. Ive read about the rear brakes and noticed it may have had this issue on its MOT history I like tinkering cars so will check that out Cheers Sean

Hello all Quick intro Been looking for a new used car for quite a while, been tricky, Looked at BMW, Merc, Audi that are 4 or 5 years old and come to the conclusion dont want the hassle of owning one out of warranty. Tired of reading about timing chain failures etc etc. Actually owned a 2007 CLS Merc, Timing chain sprocket broke on that and it cost me £2800 to fix it so im a bit of a picky customer these days. Owned 2 x GS300 many years ago, never missed a beat, both ran well Just bought a 2010 IS250, seems a bit daft buying a car this old, but is in really good condition with full Lexus history, 90000 miles on clock From what i read, quite reliable, hoping thats the case! Cheers Sean